Angels to give '200 percent' in finals vs Cool Smashers

BY KRISTEL SATUMBAGA-VILLAR

  

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AT A GLANCE

• For Petro Gazz coach Koji Tsuzurabara, there’s no time to slow down now that the All-Filipino Conference crown is within reach once again. After all, they have been in this familiar territory three times.

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For Petro Gazz coach Koji Tsuzurabara, there’s no time to slow down now that the All-Filipino Conference crown is within reach once again. After all, they have been in this familiar territory three times.

Petro Gazz seeks its first All-Filipino Conference title against Creamline. (PVL Images)

But in those three All-Filipino finals appearances, the Angels fell short to clinch that trophy -- incidentally, against the same powerhouse rival in the Creamline Cool Smashers.

Tsuzurabara and the Angels wanted a different storyline this time. 

“If we gave our 100 percent to be where we are now, we must give 200 percent in the finals,” said Tsuzurabara moments after he and his stalwarts swept their semifinal assignments -- the last, against Akari in straight sets -- for a place in the best-of-three championship series.

They knew the tough task that lay ahead in facing Creamline, having been in a similar situation in 2019, 2022 and 2023, only to lose in the end. But Petro Gazz is determined not to waste this new opportunity this time.

“Ang haba nitong conference na to at pinagtrabahuhan namin nang maayos para makarating dito. Nasa finals na kami, bibitawan pa ba namin ito?” said Myla Pablo, whose vintage plays were instrumental in the crucial phase of their campaign.

Fil-Am Brooke Van Sickle, who is in her first finals stint, echoed the sentiment and looked at the silver lining of the long, arduous five-month conference. 

“It has been a long conference, but I think it allowed us to get to know more about each other and build that team chemistry. We have been pushing each other the whole time, non-stop. To be where we are right now is amazing,” Van Sickle said.

For Petro Gazz, it would take more than flaunting their team chemistry and determination to win. It would be like facing Goliath, with Creamline parading not only its depth and experience, but all its six All-Filipino Conference trophies. The Cool Smashers, in particular, boast of talents like Alyssa Valdez, Bernadeth Pons and Tots Carlos, to name a few.

“Everybody wants it. Everybody’s working hard for the championship. It’s just who would be working harder and performing better at crunch time,” Van Sickle said.

Game 1 is set on Tuesday, April 8, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum with the Angels seeking to draw the first blood. Game 2 is set Thursday, April 10, at the same venue, and Game 3, if necessary, is on Saturday, April 12.

Chargers survive Foxies to book quarters ticket

BY KRISTEL SATUMBAGA-VILLAR

Mar 4, 2025 07:07 PM

  

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AT A GLANCE

• Akari fought back from two sets down to survive a resilient Farm Fresh, 25-11, 23-25, 18-25, 25-21, 15-9, and barge into the quarterfinals of the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City on Tuesday, March 4. 

Akari fought back from two sets down to survive a resilient Farm Fresh, 25-11, 23-25, 18-25, 25-21, 15-9, and barge into the quarterfinals of the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City on Tuesday, March 4.

The Chargers, coming into the game as the lower-seeded squad at seventh, dug deep in their offensive prowess particularly late in the fifth set en route to the crucial win and join early quarterfinalists Creamline Cool Smashers, Galeries Tower Highrisers, Choco Mucho Flying Titans and Petro Gazz Angels.

Ivy Lacsina spearheaded Akari once again by waxing hot at the attack line, firing 21 kills to finish with 22 points. 

“Nagtiwala lang talaga kami sa sistema ni coach samin, pati na rin sa isa’t isa,” a teary-eyed Lacsina said. “Madami kaming pinadaanan the past few days, so pam-boost na rin tong panalop samin.”

CJ Soyud also fueled the Chargers with 14 points including 10 attacks, while Grethcel Soltones came off the bench with 11 points highlighted by three blocks.

After a dominating opening frame, Akari appeared to have lost its steam particularly in the third set, where it gave up nine points on errors despite its attempts to regain the upperhand.

They slowly got their rhythm in the fourth with Lacsina teaming up with Grethcel Soltones, who had fully recovered from a right hand strain, to extend the match into a deciding fifth frame.

Trisha Tubu and Rachel Daquis tried to keep Farm Fresh afloat, tying the game at 7-all after trailing 0-4 at the start of the fifth set.

But it turned out to be the Foxies’ last stand as Lacsina and Soltones joined forces for the Chargers’ next five points to gain a 12-7 cushion and never looked back.

Overall, Akari overpowered Farm Fresh in kills, 59-49, and was solid at the net with 12 blocks compared to the Foxies’ only two. The Chargers also unloaded nine aces including four from Michelle Cobb.

Tubu scored 23 points while Alyssa Bertolano added 13 in a losing effort for Farm Fresh, who were relegated to the play-in tournament for the two quarters berth.

Capital1, Chery Tiggo seek to defy odds vs fancied rivals

BY KRISTEL SATUMBAGA-VILLAR

Feb 28, 2025 09:15 AM

  

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AT A GLANCE

• Capital1 and Chery Tiggo try to draw inspiration from the stunning performance of Galeries Tower when they gun for quarterfinal berths on Saturday, March 1, in the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City. 

Capital1 and Chery Tiggo try to draw inspiration from the stunning performance of Galeries Tower when they gun for quarterfinal berths on Saturday, March 1, in the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.

The 11th seeded Solar Spikers shoot for the stars in their 4 p.m. confrontation with the second-ranked Angels, even as the No. 8 Crossovers collide with the No. 5 Flying Titans at 6:30 p.m. 

The race for the quarters seats have been unpredictable following the stunning four-set victory of 10th seed Galeries Tower against No. 3 Cignal last Thursday, Feb. 27. The Highrisers, who placed near the bottom standings in all their appearances since their inception to the league in 2023, automatically booked a Final 8 seat along with the defending champion Creamline Cool Smashers, who routed the Nxled Chameleons to advance.

Capital1’s preliminary meeting against Petro Gazz was forgettable, though, as it got beaten black and blue, 25-19, 25-18, 25-9, last Feb. 11. But Solar Spikers coach Roger Gorayeb firmly believes in his stalwarts’ capabilities to write a different narrative this time.

Out to spearhead the Milka and Mandy Romero-owned crew are Heather Guino-o, Des Clemente, Trisha Genesis and rising rookie Leila Cruz, with setter Iris Tolenada also expected to fuel the squad.

But hurdling a talent-laden Petro Gazz would be like facing Goliath as the Angels boast of a formidable hard-hitting trio in Brooke Van Sickle, MJ Phillips and Myla Pablo. 

Like Capital1, Chery Tiggo seeks to defy odds as it also plans to avenge its 25-18, 25-23, 26-24 prelims loss to Choco Mucho just last Feb. 22.

The Crossovers boast of an arsenal anchored on veteran Ara Galang, with Cess Robles and Shaya Adorador expected to provide reinforcements.

Choco Mucho, however, hopes it would not suffer the same fate as Cignal as a loss would relegate them to the round-robin losers’ bracket for the two quarters tickets.

Sisi Rondina remains a big threat from the 2024 All-Filipino bridesmaids, with Isa Molde, Dindin Manabat and Cherry Nunag also at the core of their attack.

Cool Smashers, Angels edge foes, take top 2 seedings

BY KRISTEL SATUMBAGA-VILLAR

Feb 20, 2025 06:25 PM

  

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AT A GLANCE

• Creamline fought back from a tight second set before edging a resilient Galeries Tower, 25-15, 26-24, 25-19, to take the No. 1 seeding in the next round of the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City on Thursday, Feb. 20. 

Creamline fought back from a tight second set before edging a resilient Galeries Tower, 25-15, 26-24, 25-19, to take the No. 1 seeding in the next round of the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City on Thursday, Feb. 20.

Alyssa Valdez flashes her vintage form and finishes with 16 points for Creamline. (PVL Images)

The Cool Smashers displayed their championship caliber anchored on veteran Alyssa Valdez to finish the first-round preliminaries on a high note with a 10-1 win-loss record.

It set them up for a meeting with Nxled after the Chameleons bowed to the Petro Gazz Angels, 25-19, 25-14, 25-17, to finish with the 1-10 mark for the 12th seeding. The Angels, for their part, also finished at 10-1 for the second seed and set up a next meeting with the 11th seed Capital1 Solar Spikers.

Galeries Tower, whose loss also put them at 1-10, but gave them a higher seeding at 10th, arranged a meeting with No. 3 Cignal.

Creamline needed that straight-set victory to seal the top seeding as they entered the match tied with Petro Gazz at the helm, though with a slim set-win advantage 29-27.

The win didn’t come easy, though.

After a dominating opening set, the Cool Smashers found themselves trailing the Highrisers after the Galeries Tower tightened its defense spearheaded by Roselle Baliton and Grazielle Bombita. 

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Jho Maraguinot and France Ronquillo also bannered the Highrisers’ offensive assault, giving them a 22-16 edge.

That turned out to be the Highrisers’ last stand as Valdez conspired with Tots Carlos in finally destroying Galeries Tower’s net defense with their hard-hitting attacks on all angles for eight straight points to grab the 24-22 upperhand.

Maraguinot and Andrea Marzan stopped the bleeding for the Highrisers and tied it at 24-all, but a combination play from Carlos and a down-the-line spike from Valdez sealed the set victory for the Cool Smashers.

From there, Creamline kept that momentum and dictated the pace throughout the third frame en route to the win.

“It was a good game for both sides. Nag-wok yung mga basics namin and we really worked hard on our system these past few days so thankfully, nanalo kami,” said Valdez, who flashed her vintage form by finishing 16 points on 15 kills and one block.

“Every time nagta-time out kami, Coach (Sherwin Meneses) was asking us to get one point at a time. It just so happened the momentum switched on our side so luckily we finished it with a win,” she added.

Carlos paced the Cool Smashers with 18 points built on 16 attacks, while Bea De Leon, Jema Galanza and Pangs Panaga combined for 16 points.

Galeries Tower finished with a 1-10 mark despite Baliton scoring 10 points.

Davison shines as PLDT drubs Farm Fresh

BY KRISTEL SATUMBAGA-VILLAR

Feb 4, 2025 06:13 PM

  

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AT A GLANCE

• PLDT banked on hard-hitting Savi Davison as it made short work of Farm Fresh with a 25-20, 25-17, 25-19 victory on Tuesday, Feb. 4, in the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.

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PLDT banked on hard-hitting Savi Davison as it made short work of Farm Fresh with a 25-20, 25-17, 25-19 victory on Tuesday, Feb. 4, in the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.

Savi Davison scores 26 points for PLDT. (PVL Images)

The 5-foot-10 Davison was unstoppable at the attack line, pumping in 23 kills to finish with 26 points to steer the High Speed Hitters to their sixth win in nine matches.

It was the second straight triumph for PLDT as it aims to strengthen its playoff standing. They are currently at third behind unbeaten Creamline (7-0) and Petro Gazz (6-1), which is playing ZUS Coffee as of this writing. 

Mika Reyes also displayed her vintage form and unloaded nine attacks to finish with 10 points, while Erika Santos and Majoy Baron combined for 17 points.

“Lesson lang samin mawala yung complacency and mas maging consistent. Sana madala pa namin to sa mga next games namin,” said PLDT coach Rald Ricafort.

Angge Alcantara also played a key role throughout the 77-minute match, delivering 12 of the team’s 16 excellent sets, while libero Kath Arado and Fiola Ceballos took charge of the floor defense and conspired for 24 excellent digs.

PLDT pounced on Farm Fresh on all angles, outscoring them in attacks, 52-31, while making more blocks, 8-4. 

So tight were the High Speed Hitters’ defense that they limited all Foxies to single-digit production with Trisha Tubu being held to a measly nine points.

The Foxies failed to sustain their four-set victory over the Galeries Tower Highrisers last Thursday, Jan. 30, and slipped to a 4-5 win-loss record.

Alex Eala drubs Japanese to advance in Mumbai tourney

BY KRISTEL SATUMBAGA-VILLAR

Feb 3, 2025 03:05 PM

  

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AT A GLANCE

• Alex Eala clobbered Sara Saito of Japan, 6-1, 6-0, to barge into the second round of the L&T Mumbai Open tennis championships on Monday, Feb. 3, in India.

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Alex Eala clobbered Sara Saito of Japan, 6-1, 6-0, to barge into the second round of the L&T Mumbai Open tennis championships on Monday, Feb. 3, in India.

File Photo from Alex Eala Facebook

Unlike in their last meeting a few days back where the match went the distance, the 19-year-old Eala hardly broke a sweat this time as she overpowered her younger rival in a match that lasted exactly an hour.

So dominating was Eala that she never dropped her serve throughout as she bombarded Saito with shots from all angles. 

The Filipina tennis standout cruised to a quick 4-1 lead in the opening set and never looked back.

Up next for Eala will be the winner between sixth Nao Hibino of Japan and compatriot Mai Hontama, who are playing at press time.

Eala entered the week at No. 137 in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) singles, slipping three rungs from No. 134 last week.

She hopes to regain her bearings and claim a breakthrough WTA title.

Eala faces Japanese in Mumbai opener

BY KRISTEL SATUMBAGA-VILLAR

Feb 3, 2025 02:25 PM

  

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AT A GLANCE

• Alex Eala returns to action on Monday, Feb. 3, when she competes in the L&T Mumbai Open in India.

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Alex Eala returns to action on Monday, Feb. 3, when she competes in the L&T Mumbai Open in India.

File Photo/Alex Eala Facebook

The unseeded Eala is scheduled to face Japanese Sara Saito in the first round of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA)125 event that offers a total cash purse of $115,000.

This isn’t the first time that Eala and Saito are meeting. A few days back, both players battled in the first qualifying round at the Singapore Tennis Open where the 19-year-old Filipina standout prevailed, 6-1, 6-7 (1), 7-5. 

Eala, however, eventually lost in her next match against Swiss Simona Waltert in straight sets for a chance to earn a main draw berth.

While Eala boasts of a higher ranking at No. 134 in the WTA singles compared to Saito, who is 30 rungs below at No. 164, the Filipina bet remains wary of the Japanese following that tough duel the last time.

Prior to the Singapore tournament, Eala competed in the W100 Bengaluru in India the week before but lost in the second round of the qualifiers.

She opened the season with a semifinal finish at the Canberra 125 in Australia last January after going through a two-round qualifying, then went straight to play at the Grand Slams. 

Also out campaigning in India is Philippines’ top doubles player Francis Casey Alcantara, as he teams up with Pruchya Isaro of Thailand in the Chennai Open Challenger.

Seeded fourth in the 32-pair field, the Filipino-Thai tandem is set to face Czech veterans Jiri Vesely and Dalibor Svrcina.

Alcantara, ranked No. 240 in the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) doubles, last played at the Nonthaburi Challenger in Thailand last month with Czech partner Zdenek Kolar where they finished in the quarterfinals.

Kat Tolentino undergoes surgery for ruptured appendix

BY KRISTEL SATUMBAGA-VILLAR

Jan 21, 2025 08:04 PM

  

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AT A GLANCE

• Choco Mucho opposite spiker Kat Tolentino is expected to miss a few games after being diagnosed with a ruptured appendix. 

Choco Mucho opposite spiker Kat Tolentino is expected to miss a few games after being diagnosed with a ruptured appendix.

Kat Tolentino (PVL Images)

The team said Tolentino had to be hospitalized for severe abdominal pains last Monday, Jan. 20, and had to undergo surgery Tuesday, Jan. 21.

“She is resting now. Let’s pray for her quick and full recovery,” read the statement, which was posted on the team’s social media.

“Get well soon, Kat! The entire Titan fam is here for you and will always have your back,” it added.

The Flying Titans are coming off a five-set victory against the ZUS Coffee Thunderbelles last Saturday, Jan. 18, where Tolentino came off the bench and played only in the first three sets to finish with three points.

Toting a 4-3 record, Choco Mucho’s next match will be on Thursday, Jan. 23, against PLDT.